Athletes of the Week & Weekly Report Announced by A-R-C - September 29, 2025

9/29/2025 3:55:00 PM

By: Ali Wilson, A-R-C Assistant Commissioner

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) announced that Wartburg College women’s soccer student-athlete Sami Webster and Nebraska Wesleyan University football student-athlete Joey McLaughlin have been named American Rivers Conference Athletes of the Week for the week ending September 28, 2025. The A-R-C weekly awards are nominated and voted on by the league’s sports information departments. The conference office then selects the female and male athletes of the week based upon sport performers of the week. 
Female Athlete of the Week - Women’s Soccer - Offensive Performer of the Week - Sami Webster (Johnston, Iowa/Des Moines Christian), Wartburg College
  • Webster led Wartburg to a 9-1 victory over Buena Vista in its A-R-C opener. 
  • She tied a school record with four goals scored and now leads Wartburg with eight goals this season. 
Male Athlete of the Week - Football - Offensive Player of the Week - Joey McLaughlin (Colorado Springs, Colo./Air Academy), Nebraska Wesleyan University
  • McLaughlin hauled in ten receptions for 189 yards and three touchdowns in Nebraska Wesleyan’s conference win over Luther. 
  • He scored on plays from 42 yards, 11 yards and 44 yards out. 
  • He helped the Prairie Wolves total 526 yards of offense, its best output in more than three years. 
Men’s Cross Country - Runner of the Week - James Johnson (Marshalltown, Iowa/Marshalltown), Simpson College
  • Johnson finished first out of 113 runners at the Wartburg Fall Invite. 
  • He finished with a time of 25:57.3 to post a new career best and break the 26-minute mark for the first time in his career. 
  • The Storm finished second out of eight teams with 47 team points. 
Women’s Cross Country - Runner of the Week - Maddy Stevens (Grimes, Iowa/Dallas Center-Grimes), Central College
  • Stevens won her second consecutive race, taking home the Dutch Open title. 
  • She finished first out of 87 runners with a time of 22:57.8 to finish 22.6 seconds ahead of second place. 
  • The Dutch finished first out of five teams with 19 team points. 
Football - Defensive Player of the Week - CJ Hangartner (Tucson, Ariz./Cienga), Simpson College
  • Hangartner delivered his second defensive touchdown of the season with a 74-yard interception return. 
  • His pick-six marked the fourth-longest interception return in program history. 
  • He added four solo tackles, including one for loss, and a pass breakup.
  • This was Simpson’s first shutout win since 2019.
Football - Special Teams Player of the Week - Aiden Lanier (Port Orange, Fla./Spruce Creek), Simpson College
  • Lanier went five-for-five in PATs and two-for-three in field goals to account for 11 points in the Storm conference win over Buena Vista. 
  • His made field goals were from 36 and 39 yards out. 
  • He had seven kickoffs for 396 yards, averaging 56.6 yards with three touchbacks. 
  • He is now tied atop the Division III leaderboard with eight made field goals this season. 
Women’s Golf - Golfer of the Week - Annemarie Schloo (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson), Luther College
  • Schloo finished tied-second at the Waldorf Fall Invitational on Sunday. 
  • She finished with a round of 79 to make the All-Tournament Team. 
  • The Norse fired its lowest team score since 2021 with a 335 to finish third out of five teams.  
Men’s Soccer - Defensive Performer of the Week - Alexander Drexler (High Ridge, Mo./Northwest), Loras College
  • Drexler made nine saves in the 4-1 Duhawk win over Wisconsin-Platteville. 
  • In the conference opener tie against Nebraska Wesleyan, he made 11 saves, including two penalty kick saves. 
Men’s Soccer - Offensive Performer of the Week - Flori Gembo (Coraville, Iowa/Liberty), Wartburg College
  • Gembo helped lead Wartburg to a 1-1 week overall, including a 7-1 conference win over Buena Vista in the league opener. 
  • He directly contributed to four of Wartburg’s first five goals scored: scoring two goals, assisting one goal, and drew a PK that led to a goal. 
  • His five points against Buena Vista marks the highest point total in a single match in his career. 
Women’s Soccer - Defensive Performer of the Week - Elle Street (Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny), Simpson College
  • Street scored the game-tying goal before assisting the game-winning goal against Monmouth. 
  • She put the Storm on the board first against Coe, scoring her second career goal in the fourth minute. 
  • She finished the week with five points recorded.
Women’s Tennis - Performer of the Week - Mary Breitbach (Peoria, Ill./Peoria Notre Dame), Loras College
  • Breitbach went 2-0 in singles and 2-0 in doubles in conference matches on the weekend. 
  • She went 2-0 at No. 1 singles, picking up 6-0,6-2 and 6-0, 6-0 wins over Nebraska Wesleyan and Buena Vista. 
  • At No. 2 doubles, she teamed up with Megan Covelli to earn 7-6 and 6-0 wins. 
Women’s Volleyball - Defensive Performer of the Week - Anna Sash (Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny Centennial), Wartburg College
  • Sash anchored Wartburg’s front line during a perfect 3-0 week, including defeating No. 25 Carthage and opening up conference action with a win over Luther. 
  • In a five-set thriller, she recorded seven blocks and ten kills to lead the Knights past its highest-ranked opponent since 2023. 
  • She followed it up with 12 kills and six blocks against Augsburg. 
Women’s Volleyball - Offensive Performer of the Week - Jada Schmidt (Ankeny, Iowa/Ankeny), Simpson College
  • Schmidt moved to the middle for the first time this season and registered a double-double to lead Simpson past Buena Vista in the conference opener. 
  • She recorded 12 kills with just one error in 21 attempts. 
  • Schmidt tallied a career-high 12 digs as well as a solo block, two assists, and an ace. 
Weekly Report
Just two teams stand atop the standings unblemished this season after another week in conference football action: Central and Wartburg. 
 
Conference soccer kicked off over the weekend. On the men’s side, Coe and Wartburg picked up wins and on the women’s side, Univ. of Dubuque, Loras, Simpson, and Wartburg all earned wins. 
 
Central, Univ. of Dubuque, Simpson, and Wartburg sit at 1-0 in conference volleyball action. 
 
Championship Central: The first championship for the 2025-26 academic year is in the books with the Men’s Tennis Individual Tournament over this past weekend in Waverly, Iowa and Waterloo, Iowa. The next championship on the docket is Women’s Tennis Individual Tournament (October 10-11) and Women’s Golf (October 11-13). The full 2025-26 championship calendar can be found here: https://tr.ee/xwew1v
 
Fall Sport Standings: Football | Men’s Soccer | Women’s Soccer | Women’s Volleyball | Women’s Tennis
 
Watch all A-R-C action on the American Rivers Sports Network. 
Don't forget to become a fan of the American Rivers Conference on Facebook @AmericanRiversConference, X (Twitter) @AmerRiversConf, and Instagram @AmericanRiversConference.
About the American Rivers Conference
Nationally respected for excellence in NCAA Division III athletics, the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) has a tradition dating back to its founding in 1922 as the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Association and adopted its current name in 2018 to reflect its strong Iowa roots and growing regional footprint. The A-R-C is a collaborative community that champions the holistic development of student-athletes, uniting member institutions in a shared commitment to academic achievement, athletic distinction, and leadership.
 
The A-R-C is home to nine full-time member institutions: Buena Vista University, Central College, Coe College, University of Dubuque, Loras College, Luther College, Nebraska Wesleyan University, Simpson College, and Wartburg College. Luther College has announced its departure from the conference, effective at the conclusion of the 2025–26 academic year.